Brisbane Live At Work: Friday, January 25, 2013

As Brisbane Live At Work signs off for the Australia Day long weekend we hope everyone has a fun few days and more importantly, stays dry! With 200 to 300 millimetres expected to be dumped on the city over the weekend, drive carefully and steer clear of creeks and drains.

Brisbane Live At Work will be back on Tuesday. May your beers be cold and your sausages not soggy.

Sewage is bubbling up in the streets of Gladstone but Mayor Gail Sellers says it's nothing to worry about. The sewers have been flooded by the Big Wet and overflowed but Ms Sellers said it was very diluted and did not pose a health risk.

5:15pm on 25 Jan 2013

If you're planning on catching public transport tomorrow Translink tells us everything will be running to a normal Saturday timetable.

However, Brisbane Transport and Queensland Rail will be running a Sunday timetable on Monday, although no NightLink services will be running.

Queensland Rail will also be running an additional Gympie North train at 6am, arriving at Roma Street at 8.53am. There'll also be extra trains running from Central station to Doomben for the Australia Day Races.

Rockhampton has begun to mop up after the worst of the Big Wet has passed and there is some serious cleaning to do. Channel 7 got this shot of a house which was the victim of a mudslide.

. Photo: Seven News

5:03pm on 25 Jan 2013

We’ve had Clive Palmer tell us his favourite Australian song, but what about Jeff - his pet T Rex? We put the question to Jeff on Twitter (@JefftheTRex) and fed the response through our robotic dinosaur translator:

"Hey @brisbanetimes, Jeff is partial to anything by fellow dinosaur Jimmy Barnes. After all, we're about the same age. #rahhh"

4:54pm on 25 Jan 2013

Lucky escape: Eight people have been rescued from floodwaters in central Queensland. Police said they did not know if the eight were in separate cars or a mini-bus but they were airlifted from water at Wycarbah.

4:35pm on 25 Jan 2013

He's a man of action. A man of words - lots of words. A man of dinosaurs and Titanic sized ideas. But at heart, he's a man of music.

Clive Palmer's favourite Australian song is "I Was Only 19" by folk singer favourite Redgum. He thinks it is a great Australian song - but while he has been spotted waltzing and dancing a jig to an Irish folk band, there has been no word on whether the war ballad is a favourite shower belter.

But maybe he saves the bathroom acoustics for 'Georgy Girl' - Clive tells us he is also a massive fan of The Seekers.

4:27pm on 25 Jan 2013

Victory! In its short life, Brisbane Live has achieved something many thought was near impossible. Treasurer Tim Nicholls and Opposition Leader Annastacia Palaszczuk have agreed on something! We have bipartisanship on what the best Australian song is in the lead up to Australia Day. Mr Nicholls has picked Sounds of Then by GANGgajang as his favourite Aussie song, the very same song which Ms Palaszczuk chose in yesterday's Brisbane Live.

No island paradise: Redlands Mayor Karen Williams has issued advice for people living and travelling to the region and North Stradbroke Island this weekend, with monsoonal conditions and tidal surges forecast.

Though "tempting" to some, Ms Williams said localised flash flooding, higher than usual tides and winds up to 90km/hour were dangerous conditions best avoided, with everyone responsible for avoiding "tragedies" suffered during similar conditions in previous years.

3:55pm on 25 Jan 2013

Here's the most popular comments and posts of the week on our Facebook account:

In the lead-up to Australia Day we’ve been getting prominent Queenslanders to name their favourite Australian songs, so we thought we’d think bigger and ask both the federal Opposition Leader and the Prime Minister what their favourites are.

We’re yet to hear back from Tony Abbott’s office, but Prime Minister Julia Gillard has provided us with a list of Australian acts she likes to listen to, which include Cold Chisel, Russell Morris, Midnight Oil and Kylie Minogue. However she didn’t name a specific song (when you’re Prime Minister you get to make the rules).

Since she named Russell Morris, we’ll play you the only Russell Morris song we know:

3:16pm on 25 Jan 2013

The very lovely lads of Celtic Thunder (four Irish and a Scot) are in town ahead of their Tuesday night show at the Concert Hall.

They've confessed their female fans often give them a lot of mothering, knitting them jumpers and baking them cakes!

Celtic Thunder in Queensland today. Photo: Natalie BochenskiBack to top

2:54pm on 25 Jan 2013

200mm of rain in the next 24hrs. That's the prediction for Brisbane from weatherzone.

It will mean high winds, heavy rain and flash flooding. Not great for the Aussie Day BBQ.

Brisbane braces for 'flash flooding'

Residents in Brisbane can expect "heavy rainfall and potentially damaging winds" with 200mm of rain expected over the next 24 hours into Australia Day.

2:48pm on 25 Jan 2013

Artistic director of the Queensland Theatre Company Wesley Enoch reveals what his favourite Australian song is:

"Treaty by Youthu Yindi is my all time favourite song. It makes me want to get up and dance and is still the best mix of hard rock, electronic and that fantastic vocal that just soars. It is an amazing mix of everything that goes to the core of this country. It reminds me that art can tell a story that can influence a nation."

2:44pm on 25 Jan 2013

It doesn't appear that recent internal furore in Katter's Australian Party will be blowing over any time soon - dumped Senate candidate Bernard Gaynor says he intends to fight his suspension.

Mr Gaynor says that other party member's have expressed their personal opinions and not been suspended - and thinks the party leadership personally supports his opinion.

"The last time I spoke to Bob Katter he commended my moral courage. I am disappointed, however, that his party has chosen a politically-correct course of action. The Greens would be very happy with this decision," Mr Gaynor said in a statement.

2:34pm on 25 Jan 2013

RACQ CQ Rescue helicopter is heading to bridge north of Middlemount, in central Queensland, where a car has reportedly been washed off the road and is submerged up to its roof.

A spokeswoman says there are no more details at this stage, including whether any people were inside the vehicle.

2:30pm on 25 Jan 2013

Paul J Turner. Photo: Fairfax Radio 4BH

End of an era... long-time 4BH announcer Paul J Turner's announced on his Facebook page that he's resigned from the hits and memories radio station.